Aetiology of secondary lymphoedema with non-oncologic origin

About 60% of all lymphoedemas are of secondary origin; among those more than a half are caused by neoplasias. Nevertheless, a marked number of secondary lymphoedemas are of non-oncologic origin. The aim of this paper is to present a recent survey of aethiologies for this type of lymphoedema. In general, two groups can be distinguished: 1. causes with immunologic activity (e. g. Filaria, Arthritis), and 2. without immunologic activity (e. g. traumata, surgery). This shows once more, that lymphology cannot be adressed by a single medical discipline, but requires a genuine interdisciplinary approach.